Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, June 2016

On this bloom day I am going to focus on the most exciting bloom in my garden, the one that I catch passerby snapping photos of on their phones.

On May 1st I noticed that my Dasylirion texanum was starting to form a bloom spike. I didn't even realize that they bloom!

I planted it in May of 2012, when it was just a wee thing. I got it at the Rare Plant Research sale. It's sited in a sharp-draining gravel berm in full sun, facing dead south.

Dasylirion is polycarpic so, unlike agave, it should be able to survive after blooming. Reports on the internet are sparse but it seems these can bloom every four years or so. Lance at Garden Riots reports that he has lost dasylirion after blooming, so my fingers are crossed. This is probably my very favorite plant in my garden and I'd be so bummed if I had to replace it.

On May 7th, one week later:

Here we are on May 19th, two and a half weeks after I noticed the bloom stalk. It grew quickly, adding noticeable height on a daily basis.

On June 5th the blooms began to emerge.

June 8th.

June 12th

And June 15th, about six weeks after I first noticed the bloom spike.

The bloom spike topped out at just over 12' from the base of the plant. The base of the plant is showing some yellowing, which I hope is normal and not a sign of the plant dying.

The hum of the bees covering this thing is audible from the driveway, which is pretty cool.

Happy bloom day! As always, a big thanks to Carol, our host at May Dreams Gardens.

Dasylirion texanum is my favorite plant in the garden (this week)

When Greg and I were in Amsterdam we went to the Botanical Garden. I flew halfway around the world to see gunnera for the first time, a plant that grows incredibly well in Portland. I had no idea it existed! I also witnessed the biggest agave I'd ever seen in the flesh and a Dasylirion acrotrichum. I was totally fascinated by how soft (looking) and kinetic such a spiky plant could be. I fell in love.

Two years ago I picked up a Dasylirion texanum at Rare Plant Research.

It's taken its sweet time bulking up but it's finally starting to come into its own.

The filifers are perfectly coiffed.

Those perfect ribbons of green sport teeth that glow in the sunlight.

I can't wait to see how it fills out the berm as it continues to grow.

It's a tough SOB, zones 5a-11. It can form a trunk (which may be partly buried beneath the ground), with an eventual height and width of 3-5', depending on who you ask. It needs well drained soil but handles the ample moisture in Portland well. It's heat and drought tolerant, liking sun to part shade. It has handled the recent freeze as well as some scorching heat with no sign of stress at all. It will eventually form a 9-15' flower stalk. BITCHIN'.

My favorite plant in the garden this week is hosted by Loree at Danger Garden. Be sure to check out what she's liking this week!

At last

 . . . my love (that is not Greg) has come along to my garden.

How did I get joint compound on that green pot?

In April a friend gave me a gift certificate to Garden Fever. I'm at Garden Fever all the time and I could've spent it before now but I didn't want to use it on tomatoes or compost or filler plants. I wanted to use it for something special.

I finally got an Agave 'Blue Glow.' I was so excited I bought two. Because I'm a greedy little plant-pig, I wish I had bought three.

These guys are hardy in zones 9b-11, so they'll have to come inside for the winter. They reach a mature size of 1-2' by 1-2' and apparently they are fast growers. I could have purchased a larger size but they didn't look as nice as the smaller ones did.

As long as we're talking about pokey plants, I thought I'd give you an update on some of my others . . .

After sitting like a bump on a log for a year, my Dasylirion texanum has pumped out a ton of new growth. He's surrounded by biennials and easily moved grasses, so he'll have plenty of room to stretch to his full size (3' tall by 3-5' wide). This one is hardy down to zone 5 and it hasn't been fazed by the heavy rains.

My agaves have gotten hugongous. Three of them are more than a foot across. Too bad about that tenacious petticoat of oxalis, grrr.

This guy had some damage from the wet spring. He's also a little sheltered by the milkweed and crocosmia, so I don't think he's drying out enough.

Those low white blooms are Lewisia cotyledon 'White Splendor'. They have been blooming without stop since the first of April. They are hardy in zones 4-10 and only ask for excellent drainage.

This one's going to get her own MTV show. A baby having babies! You're too young!

This is a pup I recently unwound from one of the larger agaves and it's only a couple of inches across. They grow up so fast these days!